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Trailer Options for 2 Kids

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Trailer Options for 2 Kids

Old 07-15-19, 08:09 AM
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rzsionak
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Trailer Options for 2 Kids

I'm looking for options on how I can trailer or carry both my kids, ages 6 and 8, at the same time. Right now I can carry one and when my wife comes riding with us she can carry the other, though I'd prefer to carry both kids when we go together so our riding pace was more even. This wasn't as much an issue before as the younger child didn't care much about riding, but now he likes riding along a lot. The main issue is the younger child is special needs which limits what he can ride in, and the older child only recently learned to ride on his own and can't ride any great distance yet.

What I currently have:
Burley Piccolo - The older child typically uses this
Weehoo (Single) - I usually put the younger child in this as I don't have to worry about him falling out
Synapse - I use a lower end version for commuting and trailering one of the kids. I'm ok with trailering one vehicle, but wouldn't want to put too much weight on this setup.
Older Trek 7.3 FX Hybrid

Goals and needs:
- Keep the younger child in a seat that doesn't require him to hold on the whole time. Typical rides are 20-40 miles.
- Not invest too much in a setup that will be moot in a 2-3 years when the older child can get around better on his own
- Smaller gears for getting up the hills I live in. I'm not interested in an e-bike.
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Old 07-15-19, 08:19 AM
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You don't say how far you are riding or how far the 8yo is already riding. But 8 is old enough to do a lot. I wouldn't buy a trailer for him. It's certainly not going to take him 3 years to build endurance. My 5yo can ride three miles no problem on his 16er, I haven't found his limit yet. And he's... not exactly the next soccer superstar.

There may not be an off-the-shelf solution for your 6yo that will last you. Have a look at the seat Martyn Ashton had made for his 'Random Tandem" or maybe take a look at Bilenky / Hase tandems.
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Old 07-15-19, 08:36 AM
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Originally Posted by Darth Lefty
You don't say how far you are riding or how far the 8yo is already riding. But 8 is old enough to do a lot. I wouldn't buy a trailer for him. It's certainly not going to take him 3 years to build endurance. My 5yo can ride three miles no problem on his 16er, I haven't found his limit yet. And he's... not exactly the next soccer superstar.

There may not be an off-the-shelf solution for your 6yo that will last you. Have a look at the seat Martyn Ashton had made for his 'Random Tandem" or maybe take a look at Bilenky / Hase tandems.
Our typical rides are 20-40 miles. The 8yo can ride about 3-5 miles now.

I anticipate the 6yo will have more capability in the next couple years, but would still need some kind of tandem setup.
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Old 07-15-19, 12:03 PM
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Yeah, take a look at tandems. I'm not sure if this post is public, if not the group will likely be glad to add you. It might give you some ideas:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=oa.1085678498297381&type=3
I'm the guy in the watermelon helmet. You can do a lot adding a kid seat or a trailer to a tandem, though I have to admit triplets or more seem kind of silly to me. Like just for instance, you on single + 6yo in his Weehoo, wife and 8yo on a Co-motion Periscope. Or if you think the 8yo will flag, or the 6yo will be able to ride the tandem normally, Da Vinci make tandems with independent pedaling... they don't have that same long seat post but they do sell a kid-back kit and it comes with their neato mult-hole cranks.

And 40 miles with the whole family? I'm curious how you make that work, because I'd like to do that with my family but they would mutiny.
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Old 08-12-19, 04:14 PM
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I know this thread is a month old, but my 2 bits.. I 2nd Darth with the tandem recommend for this type of use case. The cruiser "cheap american tandems" can be a good budget option. You can get a decent looking one for a couple hundred. Or not so pretty ones for under a hundred. Sometimes free. Fam outgrows it? Give it away or sell it off for what you paid. No big deal.

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/opctandem.html

With an 8yo probably wont have to but chop the rear seat post down if you need to. Grab some short one piece cranks off of a trashed kids bike and chuck it in the rear bb- also maybe not needed for an 8yo. Then throw a kid trailer on and you're set.
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Old 08-12-19, 05:07 PM
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I guess storage space is the downside to having a dedicated tandem for the +kid rides.. still haven't solved that one myself.
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Old 10-20-19, 02:16 PM
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OP update. I ended up getting a barely used Trek T900 tandem and attaching the Piccolo to it with an Adams back rest that has a seat belt on it for the younger one. The setup works well, though I’m having to make a lot of updates to the Trek, as the stock parts it came with are largely junk. Once I get everything updated, I figure longer trips will be in the cards.
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